Life-preserver.



W. S. WILKINSON & G. B. UPHAM. LIFE PRESERVER. APPLIUATION FILED MAY 2o,1905.`

960,1 Patented May 31, 190.

ZLZnee Inverti/Fors: rw/ce QW wali'e' as. wilkinon: george. Yala/am.

fugaz/irs.

ANDREW & GRAHAM co., PNOTOUTHOGRAPHERS, wAsmNsToN. ne.

,entran srnrns kann o me WALTER S. WILKINSON, OF WYTI-IEVILLE, VIRGINIA,ANI) GEORGE B. UPHALVI, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

LIFE-PRESERVER.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, WALTER S. WILKIN- SON and GEORGE B. UPHAM, bothcitizens of the United States, and residing, respectively, atlVytheville, Virginia, and Boston, Massachusetts, have invented anImprovement in Life-Preservers, of which the following description, inconnection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, likenumerals on the drawings representing like parts.

This invention relates to the improvement of life preservers andparticularly, though not exclusively, to such as are intended forindividual use. These usually comprise a suitable covering, such ascanvas, and a filling of buoyant material, such as cork and the like. Inmost life preservers as at present constructed the filling materialconsists either of solid blocks or of granules or small bodies of somesuitable buoyant substance with which the covering, or pockets orseparate compartments thereof, are lled, said covering or the aperturesof said compartments being then closed by stitching or otherwise.

The use of the free granular filler is Open to the serious objectionthat in the case of rupture of the material of the cover or of the seamsthereof, the free granules or particles run out like grain, therebydestroying the buoyant properties of the life preserver in proportion tothe amount of filler so dissipated. It is also open to the objectionthat being unprotected except by the fabric covering, it will, in caseof long exposure to moisture of the air or immersion in water,deteriorate, become soggy or water-soaked and thus lose to a greatextent its buoyant property. A further objection to the usualconstruction is the fact that the granules of cork or other fillingbeing more or less free to move, relative to each other, become more orless packed, with a resulting loss of buoyancy even when they arecontained in a waterproof pouch or covering.

Our invention aims, among other things, to combine small pieces of lightmaterial into a structural, but more or less flexible, block having avery small specific gravity, to preserve the original buoyant qualityeven when long exposed to moisture or to actual immersion in water andprevent the Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 20, 1905.

Patented llay 31, 1910.

Serial No. 261,470.

possibility of the escape of the filler upon rupture of the material orseams of the usual textile covering, also greatly to diminish thedeterioration due to time, handling and use.

Our invention consists of an improvement of the life preserver describedand claimed in our application, Serial No. 228,665, filed October 17th,1904, and consists both in a life preserver possessing the advantagesabove described and in a process for producing the same.

The character and scope of the invention will be clearly apparent from adescription of one particular embodiment thereof, such as thatillustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure l shows a life preserver containing our improved filler; and Fig.2 shows a portion of the ller before inclosing the same in its covering.a

In the embodiment of the invention which has been herein selected forthe purpose of illustration, the life preserver consists of the coveringl, which is formed of a plurality of plies or sheets of canvas, or othersuitable material, stitched together along their edges and provided withtransverse lines of stitching, 2, to form separate pockets, 3, withinthe covering for the reception of the blocks, or members of buoyantmaterial as prepared by our process.

In the preferred form of our invention or that shown in Fig. 2, thebuoyants, as we shall hereinafter designate the blocks or members to beinserted in the pockets 8, are composed of irregular shaped pieces orgranules 4 of cork, preferably of a size to pass through a mesh one-halfan inch square but to rest on a mesh one-quarter of an inch square.Pieces of this size we describe as comminuted cork. These pieces afterbeing thoroughly dried to free them from all moisture are immersed in abath of hot bituminous cement composed preferably of natural asphaltofsuitable consistency and melting point, or a natural asphalt fluxed withother and lighter natural asphalt or with some product of petroleum suchas is commonly called residuum of petroleum, or with a blown oil flux orpitch made from a heavy petroleum with an asphaltic base. Saidbituminous cement may consist entirely of such blown oil i'iux if ofsuitable consistency and melting point, or it may be any bituminouscement which is impervious to moisture, adhesive and nonfriable at lowand firm at moderately high temperature.

Vhile the cork is being mixed in and with the cement the latter is to bekept at a temerature necessary to maintain decided liquidity; this maybe as low as lelOO or as high as L00O Fahrenheit, according to thecharacter of the cement used.

After the cork has been thoroughly mixed with the cement it is dippedfrom it with a wire screen dipper to allow most of the excess of bitumenbeyond that necessary to coat `the cork to Crain away. It is thenimmediately placed upon a wire screen in an oven heated to from 350O toL00o Fahrenheit and kept' there until all the surplus cement is drainedoff, leaving each piece or granule of cork covered with a thin, het,adhesive and waterproof film 5 of bituminous cement. These pieces thuscoated and while still hot are then lightly deposited in a suitable moldlined with a muslin or cloth bag or receptacle to form an inner covering6, and when the mold is full a flap of muslin is drawn over the top tocomplete the inner covering, thus forming a suitably shaped buoyantcomposed of pieces of cork, each piece rendered waterproof, each piecelightly, firmly, yet in a measure flexibly adhering at some point orplace to each adj acent piece of cork, and thus being relativelymaintained in a practically permanent position; the outer surfaces ofthe outer pieces will adhere to the cloth lining of the mold. The filmcoated pieces should not be packed into the mold with any pressure, butdeposited therein as lightly as possible in order that there may be asmany and as large air interstices 8 as possible between the irregularshaped film coated and adhering pieces of cork.

Then the molded and cloth-covered buoyant thus formed is sufficientlycool to keep its shape it is taken from the mold, the flap sewed orsuitably fastened, and the whole is then dipped in hot bituminous cementof the character4 already described and while the cement coating 7 thusproduced is still hot and in a condition to attach by adhesion anythingwhich comes in contact with it, the surface is covered with a coating 9of small pieces of uncoated comminuted cork or other buoyant material,preferably cork which will pass through a mesh one-sixteenth of an inchsquare but free from dust. The dipping of the molded and cloth-coveredbuoyant in the bituminous cement coats it with waterproof yet in ameasure flexible covering which will under ordinary handling and usagepreventl any water from passing through the covering, while the piecesof interstices and into the air interstices within,

in order that the specific gravity of the coated fabric, andconsequently that of the life preserver as a whole, may be kept as lowas possible.

An excellent bituminous cement may be composed of 50% of refinedBermudez: asphalt and of blown oil flux. This bituminous cement hasabout the same specific gravity as water and is not unduly soft at 100OF. or brittle at 320 F. lt will permanently resist all action ofmoisture or water; it will not deteriorate with time as is the case withindia rubber cements. iifhen it is heated to a suitable degree oftemperature, say, from 300o to 3200 Fahrenheit and the comminuted corkis dipped in it and allowed to drain in the oven as abovc described, itforms a thin film completely covering the su rface of the pieces of corkand rendering 'them permanently moisture and waterproof. When the filmcoated pieces are removed from the oven, placed lightly within thefabric lined mold and are vthere allowed to cool, the pieces adherelightly yet in a measure flexibly together with ample air spaces betweenthem, the outer surfaces of the outer pieces of cork adhere to thefabric lining of the mold and when the buoyant thus formed issuiiiciently cool to be removed from the mold and is dipped in thebituminous cement, the latter forms a water and moisture-proof coveringfor the buoyant. Then covered with the outer coating 0 of comminutedcork and protected by the canvas covering l of the pocket, the lifepreserver may be handled, thrown from place to place, walked upon andactually misused without affecting the waterproof quality of the buoyantwhich is a structurah in a measure flexible, moisture and waterproofblock, its permanent waterproof character being due to the flexibilityof the cork, the waterproof and fiexible qualities and imlestructibilityof the bituminouscement` when prepared and used as above described.rfhis buoyant possesses advantages over the usual, but much more ei;-pensive natural cork blocks. in that its specifre gravity is less thanthat of a cry natural cork block and lvery much less than that of awater-soaked natural cork block. lt will not absorb water, as naturalcork does to a material extent thereby reducing its buoyancy and lifepreserving quality. ln

our buoyant the pieces of corkare rendered iabsolutely anhydrous by heatbefore being coated with the waterproof bituminous cement and thereforewill not decay.

l,Vhile we have here described a particular embodiment of our invention,it is to be understood that the invention may be variously embodied andaltered in details without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention.

Claims.

1. As an article of manufacture, a filler for life preservers comprisingblocks composed of granules or small bodies of buoyant material, awaterproof fabric covering therefor, and an outer covering of buoyantmaterial.

2. As an article of manufacture, a filler for life preservers comprisinga block composed of granules or small bodies of buoyant material coatedby thin lms of bituminous cement, a fabric covering for said blockcoated exteriorly with said cement, and an outer covering of comminutedbuoyant material.

3. As an article of manufacture, a filler for life preservers comprisingblocks composed of granules or small bodies of buoyant material, acoating therefor of cementitious material, and an outer coveringofbuoyant material.

a. As an article of manufacture, a life preserver comprising a pluralityof buoyants composed of small buoyant waterproof units, means forattaching each of said units to the adjacent units to form a structuralblock, a waterproof covering for said structural block, and a protectingcoating composed of buoyant material for said waterproof covering.

5. As an article of manufacture, a life preserver comprising a pluralityof buoyants composed of small buoyant waterproof units, means forattaching each of said units to the adjacent units to form a structuralblock, a waterproof covering for said structural block, and anexteriorly non-adhesive protecting coating composed of buoyant ma.-terial for said waterproof covering.

G. As an article of manufacture, a life preserver comprising irregularpieces of waterproofed cork, means for attaching each of said pieces tothe adjacent pieces to form a structural block, a waterproof coveringfor said structural block, and a protecting coating composed of buoyantinaterial for said waterproof covering.

i'. As an article of manufacture, a life preserver comprising aplurality of buoyants composed of irregular pieces of cork, a coating ofwaterproof bituminous cement for each of said pieces, means forattaching each of said pieces to the adjacent pieces, leaving' airinterstices between said coated pieces, the. whole forming a structuralblock and a waterproof covering composed of textile fabric treated withbituminous cement for said block.

8. Asv an article of manufacture, a life preserver comprising aplurality of buoyants composed of irregular pieces of cork, a coating ofwaterproof bituminous cement for each of said pieces, means forattaching each of said pieces to the adjacent pieces, leaving airinterstices between said coated pieces, the whole forming a structuralblock, a waterproof covering composed of textile fabric treated withbituminous cement for said block, and an exteriorly non-adhesiveprotecting coating of comminuted cork for said waterproof covering.

9. As an article of manufacture, a life preserver comprising a pluralityof buoyants composed of irregular pieces, a cementitious waterproofmaterial covering each of said pieces and attaching it to the adjacentpieces, a waterproof covering for said attached pieces, and an outercoating of buoyant material.

l0. As an article of manufacture, a life preserver comprising aplurality of buoyants composed of irregular pieces, a cementitiouswaterproof material covering each ofv said pieces and attaching it tothe adjacent pieces, a waterproof covering for said attached pieces, andan outer coating of exteriorly non-adhesive buoyant material.

ll. As an article of manufacture a life preserver comprising a textilemember provided with one or more pockets and fillers for said pockets,each filler consisting of a body of buoyant material having a coating ofwaterproof bituminous cement and an outer coating of non-adhesivematerial adapted to prevent said bituminous coating from adhering to thewalls of said pockets.

l2. As an article of manufacture a filler for life preservers comprisinga body of buoyant material, a waterproof coating for said body, and anouter coating of buoyant non-adhesive material. v

13. As an article of manufacture a filler for life preservers comprisinga body of buoyant material, a Waterproof coating for said body and anouter coating of comminuted non-adhesive material.

lt. A buoyant for use in life preservers and the like comprising aflexible, blocklike material of small specific gravit composed ofirregular shaped pieces o dried, comminuted cork, having a film-likecoating of natural asphalt, said pieces flexibly adhering to each otherbut having air interstices between them.

l5. As an article of manufacture, a life preserver comprising irregularpieces of waterproofed cork, a bituminous cement constituting means `forattaching each of' said pieces to adjacent pieces vto form a block, aWaterproof coating for Vsuch structural block and a projecting coatingconiposed of buoyant material for said Waterproof coating.

16. As an article Of manufacture, a life preserver comprising a textilemember provided With a plurality of pockets and Vllers for said pockets,each filler consisting of a body of buoyant material having a coating ofWaterproof bituminous matter rendered non-adhesive to prevent adherencethereof tO the Walls of the pockets.

17. As an article of manufacture, a life preserver comprising a textilemember and a filler consisting Of abody of buoyant Inaterial having acoating of bituminous matter 'rendered non-adhesive to prevent adherencethereof tothe textile member.

In testimony whereof, We havesigned our names to this specification, in`the presence of 'the subscribing Witnesses.

WALTER S. 'WILKINSON GEORGE B. UPHAM.

Witnesses to W. S. Vilkinson:

F. E. CALKINs, J. F. CONWAY.

`Witnesses to Gr. B. Upham: RALPH C. POWELL, E. M. COLLAR.

